The invention relates to a device for covering a wall opening, for example a breaking-through or a niche, in a wall having a tile or plate cladding on its surface.
It is already known to cover wall openings by a cover having on its outer side at least one tile or plate and consisting on its inner side at least partially of a ferromagnetic material and being held by permanent magnets cooperating with the ferromagnetic material and being provided on support members fixed on the edge of the wall opening. In such a manner a practically invisible covering of the opening is obtained because the cover member is provided on its outside with the same tiles or plates as the wall, in particular, if the joints of the tile cladding corresponds to the edge of the opening.
It is already known from the AT-PS 325,283 to dispose a frame consisting of elbows connected by connection elements within the area of the edge of the wall opening, the size of this frame being changeable and adaptable to the corresponding tile size. Permanent magnets are fixed to the elbows and cooperate with a ferromagnetic element provided on the backside of a plate-shaped cover member. Such a covering device has been shown very suitable in practice, because the frame due to its variability can be disposed exactly within the joints of the tiles and provides the covering device with the necessary stability so that it is avoided that the cover falls out in an undesired manner if it is subjected to an unintentional pressure.
However, difficulties arise if tiles or plates of big size are used, because in such a case the connection pieces connecting the elbows must be so long that the stability of the frame is no more given. Such tiles or plates of big size, for example of natural marble stone, are more and more used.
Further, it has been already proposed to fix holding elements for permanent magnets only on certain places of the edge of the wall opening, for example in the area of the corners of this wall opening. For example, it is known to anchor separate elbow elements in the wall which are provided with fixing tongues and carry the permanent magnets, or to provide separate L-shaped or S-shaped bent sheet metal strips on the side edges of the openings, which strips with their one leg are fixed to a tile confining the opening and on their other leg extending into the opening carry a permanent magnet ( AT-PS 375,128, AT-PS 355,281, FR-PS 2,364,320). Such covering devices can be used for openings of any size and for any desired size of the tiles or plates, however they show the disadvantage that they are difficult to mount and that a very exact and careful work is necessary because each elbow element or each sheet metal strip must be anchored separately, no closed frame being provided that can be inserted as a whole. Because no such closed frame is present, also the stability of this known covering devices is decreased.
From the AT-PS 375,128 it is further known to dispose the permanent magnets separately in a box-shaped seat of a carrier element consisting of a bent sheet metal strip and to fix them by means of inwardly bent brackets.
Lastly, magnetic door closures are known per se, for example for furniture pieces, refrigerators Or the like, which closures consist of a permanent magnet and a ferromagnetic element cooperating with this permanent magnet.
The present invention has at its object to provide for a device for covering a wall opening that combines the advantages of the known devices and can be used for smaller openings or tile or plate sizes as well as for bigger openings or tile or plate sizes. To solve this problem, the invention proposes a device of the initially described kind which is characterized by the combination of the following features known per se:
a) a cover member provided on its outer side with at least one tile or plate and on its inner side with at least one ferromagnetic element: PA1 b) a frame of adjustable size surrounding the wall opening and being anchorable in the masonry; PA1 c) some permanent magnets for fixing the ferromagnetic element of the cover member; PA1 d) a holding member for each permanent magnet with a connecting means for connection with the frame; PA1 e) for each holding member an anchoring member each individually fixable on the masonry.
By the inventive embodiment it is possible to connect the holding members for the permanent magnets at choice by means of the connection means to the frame or to the anchoring members individually fixable to the masonry, so that for smaller openings or tile sizes or plate sizes the frame can be used which provides the covering device the necessary stability and ensures an easy mounting, however, for bigger openings or tile sizes or plate sizes, that is in the case if a frame due to the necessary size cannot more be used economically and the big size of the tiles or plates anyhow ensures the necessary stability, each carrier element can be connected to the masonry by an own anchoring member.
A preferred embodiment of the inventive apparatus is characterized in that the holding member connecting means comprises a protrusion with a threaded bolt which can be screwed into a threaded bore on the frame, and that a predetermined breaking point is provided between the holding member and the protrusion. When using the holding member together with the frame, the connection can be made in a simple manner by screwing the threaded bolt into the threaded bore on the frame, this having the advantage that by pivoting the threaded bolt the position of the cover member can be adjusted to the thickness of the used tiles or plates. When using the holding member for a permanent magnet in connection with a separate own anchoring member, within this embodiment the protrusion with the threaded bolt can be removed by a simple buckling along the predetermined breaking point.
Suitably, the holding member comprises a slot for accommodating a section of the anchoring member. Such an embodiment is simple and nevertheless it enables a reliable anchoring of the holding member in the anchoring member.
In order to ensure a connection which cannot be shifted and is correct in its position, an interlocking connection may be provided between a plate-shaped section of the anchoring member and the slot in the holding member, which connection may comprise knobs which snap into deepenings or recesses. Within this, the knobs suitable are formed by bulges in the plate-shaped section of the anchoring member, and the deepenings are formed by apertures extending from the slot of the holding member. Vice versa, however, also the knobs may be provided in the holding member and the deepenings in the plate-shaped section of the anchoring member.
In order to ensure a simple fixing of the anchoring member in the masonry in the required position, according to a further feature of the invention, the anchoring member is of step-shaped shape and consists of the plate-shaped section, a fastening section for fixing to the masonry disposed in a plane extending parallelly to the plate-shaped section, and connection section connecting the plate-shaped section and the fastening section. Thereby it is obtained that the plate shaped section and the fastening section which can be fixed to the masonry are disposed in different planes extending parallel to each other. In this case, the fastening section may be shifted into the mortar bed or adhesive bed between the surface of the masonry and the tile or plate, and by the feature that the plate-shaped section of the anchoring member which can be inserted into the slot of the holding member is backwardly displaced with respect to the plane of the masonry, the necessary space for accommodation of the holding member and of the permanent magnet connected with this holding member is at disposal, and the tiles or plates fixed to the masonry flush with the tiles or plates fixed to the cover member.
In order to ensure that a distance is observed between the tiles or plates fixed to the masonry and the tiles or plates provided on the cover member, which distance corresponds to the width of the joints between the tiles or plates, according to a further feature of the invention the connection section is provided with at least one tongue extending beyond the fastening section fixable to the masonry and, when installed into the masonry, extending perpendicularly to the surface of the masonry, the thickness of which tongue corresponds to the joint between neighbouring tiles or plates.
A good anchoring in the masonry wall is obtained, if according to the invention the fastening section of the anchoring member fixable to the masonry is provided with apertures through which the mortar or adhesive penetrates by which the tiles are fixed to the masonry.